《Etherial Waters (Book 1 of the Etherial World)》


 Chapter 1: The beginning

    Dmitri could feel his father¡¯s bright blue eyes on him. The gaze felt so heavy, and not just because of his father¡¯s size and strength. It felt like his father was about to strap a large pack on his back. Sometimes Dmitri felt like he could sense his father approaching from that weight, and his gaze always seemed heavier when his father took him out into the sea. The waters glistened like any, but sometimes you could catch a hint of a rainbow in the corners of your eyes or your reflection waving at you. The waters of the Ethereal Seas were said to be full of magic. Mostly, people knew just to stay away from them because they were dangerous. But there were some people that made use of it, like the people of Dmitri¡¯s village, who knew how to fish from it.


    ¡°My son, these waters provide for us, but they also take much from us as well. Our people have fished the Ethereal Seas for many generations, so we know part of their secrets. It¡¯s mostly about perception.¡± Dmitri¡¯s father stopped rowing to pull up a small buoy painted in his father¡¯s yellow. At the end of the rope tied to the buoy was, what looked like, a plain glass globe. There were three Silvers swimming in it, good sized ones too. ¡°That¡¯s a nice pull,¡± Dmitri¡¯s father mused as he turned the globe slightly, causing the globe to spill its contents into a storage chest built into the back of the small fishing boat.


    ¡°You mean it makes people see things?¡± Dmitri asked. Dmitri took the buoy from where his father left it in the boat and placed it back in the water, being careful about lowering the rope and not letting his hands enter the water as his father had taught him.


    ¡°No, but you will learn. It¡¯s in your blood, so you will learn.¡± Dmitri¡¯s father went silent, deep in thought, he grabbed the oars and began to row again. Dmitri looked closely at his father¡¯s face, noticing a scar across his father¡¯s brow. It seemed to always get really white when he noticed his father thinking deeply about something.


    Dmitri¡¯s father was the kind of man people listened to.  Dmitri was always so proud of his father when the village would meet about issues. Everyone had even listened to him when he opposed the offer from High Merchant Murdoc to aggressively fish the bigger creatures in the Ethereal Waters. The Merchant Lord offered chests of gold per creature brought in. His father said they would only make the Ethereal Sea angry, giving birth to new, bigger, man-eating monsters and that none of the High Merchant Murdoc¡¯s larger hunting ships would save their lives. Dmitri did hear some grumbling in the back, but everyone had agreed to turn the offer down. The village had what it needed, and it didn¡¯t need chests of gold.


    ¡°Our calm sleepy village keeps these waters calm and sleepy. It¡¯s the way of the sea, son. It¡¯s also why we don¡¯t have Ether Mist problems like other villages. We only take what we need to survive, so it doesn¡¯t take much from us. We maintain a balance with it that way.¡±


    Dmitri woke up with a start. Why had he been dreaming about his father he wondered? That had been years ago. The sun was streaming through his window. Was it midday already? ¡°That boy can sleep all day, I swear if I hadn¡¯t birthed him myself, I would never believe he came from his father,¡± his mother was spreading good vibes for him again, Dmitri let out a sigh. The planks of the door were good enough to hide him, but not enough to shield him from the voices.


    ¡°Catherine, that¡¯s what happens when a boy loses his father. You should have remarried right away. Look at him now.¡± Dmitri could recognize that nasally voice. It always grated on his nerves, even if she could manage to talk about someone nicely it would still be an ear sore.


    ¡°Now, Natty, don¡¯t talk about Petra like that. He was such a wonderful man. Nothing and no one can replace him,¡± her voice became pinched, she was starting to get mad and Aunt Natty would keep pushing until things turned into a screaming match. And entering that space right now would make it very likely he would become the target for the screaming. Dmitri quickly changed into some canvass pants and a shirt and climbed out through his window. Also, it would hurt if they thought he had actually been awake since earlier.


    Nothing much had changed with his family¡¯s house since his father died, but the village was something completely different. The village was wild about big boats and using them for inspiration from clothes to decorations. Although, his house was still a traditionally planned plank house. With High Merchant Murdoc¡¯s patronage, there were paved roads, fancy looking shops, and now regular coach stops. This tiny village has turned into a proper Union town. High Lord Murdoc even bestowed a name onto the village, Brensonville, which is after his third son. To be fair, that son did show up one time to present the artificer with a proper workshop as gifted by High Merchant Murdoc. And he dubbed the workshop, Gilly¡¯s Hall, which was rumored to be the name of the cat he had been carrying around with him at the time.


    Dmitri headed for the door at the side of the workshop, grabbing some low hanging Berken fruit off of a nearby tree. Dmitri knocked on the door twice and waited. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± a voice responded.


    ¡°It¡¯s me, Fedore,¡± Dmitri said. The door cracked open and a youth about Dmitri¡¯s age peeked out. He had a tan complexion with brown hair and a wide friendly face. ¡°You have my fishing spheres ready?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°Dmitri, do you have my scales ready?¡± Fedore waved his skinny arms around angrily while still holding his smile in place. Fedore could keep his shopkeeper smile up through a lot of things. ¡°I need the scales from two Silvers by today.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t catch fish without the spheres, especially properly made ones.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d be happy to get the practice making them if you could get me the proper ingredients,¡± Fedore stopped talking and grimaced, ¡°here¡¯s what I made from what I had left.¡± He pulled out a plain brown sack with round bulges in it.


    Dmitri looked into the bag and had to suppress a flash of anger, ¡°these are not my colors, Fedore. These are my father¡¯s yellows.¡±


    Fedore sighed, ¡°Sorry about that. My dad saw me working on them, and when I left for a minute he had finished them. So you got some master crafted spheres, be happy.¡± Fedore tried to close the door, but Dmitri caught it.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to throw my technique off, Fedore.¡±


    ¡°Just deal with it, Dmitri. And that was your father¡¯s colors, so it shouldn¡¯t throw you off that much,¡± Fedore said. With that Fedore pushed Dmitri¡¯s hand away and slammed the door.


    Dmitri looked at the closed door a moment. What did Fedore know about him or his father anyway? Dmitri ran to the old town road a short distance away. It ran the perimeter of the town and avoided the crowd and bustle of the people that crowded the main street through town. Upon reaching the northern Palm tree, bent just like a banana, Dmitri turned north for a short hike through the hills bordering town. The sparsely placed fruit trees offered enough shade from the sun until Dmitri reached the spot he was looking for.


    A small stream emptied into the Ethereal Sea down a gentle slope. Short bright green blades of grass grew at the edges of the stream until it flowed upon an iridescent patch of sand, blending in with the sea water. The water here was calm, and the waves only gently lapped at the shore. There was also a large palm growing next to the stream before it opened to the shore. It had different fruits on different days. Dmitri hadn¡¯t noticed a pattern to it, but it was close enough to the sea to not be normal, but he had found the fruit safe to eat.


    Off in the water were three blue-green buoys, Dmitri¡¯s chosen color. He pulled on a pair of sea beast hide boots he had purchased a year ago, which he kept under the tree. He waded into the water, the waves gently flowing around his boots. He grabbed the buoy and pulled the rope. The current always pulled the spheres out, but the buoys would eventually drift into a set place, Dmitri fully expected it by now. In the sphere was one Copper, good enough for lunch Dmitri thought. The second one only had a small shelled pincher beast in it. Dmitri poured the pincher out. He wasn¡¯t interested in sea beasts because only the big ones were worth something. The last one was his last hope for the Silvers.


    Dmitri had the third one on a longer rope. He pulled the buoy onto the beach. After testing the rope, it felt heavier than before. But maybe it was just the longer rope being pulled by the tide. It¡¯s just better to calm down. Dmitri took a breath to steady himself. Confidence always serves better than fear and nerves. At least that¡¯s what his father had taught him as a boy. Dmitri pulled at the rope. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was anticipation or something else, but he didn¡¯t remember the rope being this long as he continued to pull. At last the sphere popped to the surface, pushing water out of the way as he pulled it in. Dmitri grabbed the sphere in both hands and there were two fish a Silver and a Gold in it. He caught a Gold.


    Golds had always been a sign of good fortune before the village turned to Beast Hunting to earn the High Merchant¡¯s gold and favor. He carried the sphere back near the shore a distance so that he wouldn¡¯t accidentally release the Gold back into the Sea. Dmitri poured the Silvers into his fish bucket by the tree and left the Gold in. This was something special. Dmitri¡¯s father had talked about having seen a Gold once as a child. His father had said it was a gift from the Ethereal Sea, and that his grandfather had eaten it. Dmitri¡¯s great grandfather recovered from the Failing Breath, a Mist sickness, and later saved a whole longboat of fishermen, 10 men, from sinking into the sea. What good fortune could be waiting for him, Dmitri thought. Could he end up a hero too?


    ¡°Hello there Local,¡± a voice came from Dmitri. In his surprise at hearing a voice where he never expected anyone to see him, Dmitri dropped the sphere. The sphere bounced from his hands as he jumped, rolled away and shattered on a rock by the stream, releasing the Gold. Dmitri watched the Gold swim away down the stream. Dmitri could only reach his hand out in the direction the Gold had swum and dropped to his knees.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± said the voice, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to lose you your lunch.¡± The person walked out in front of him. Her, Dmitri decided, looks were soft, and she had long white hair gathered into a ponytail and a silvery circlet on her brow. She wore a flowing silver robe, which hid her figure. Her features weren¡¯t unpleasant, but she wouldn¡¯t put any of the village girls to shame. ¡°I followed this stream here, I knew it would lead me to a perfect place.¡± Dmitri still couldn¡¯t get his thoughts together. He had just lost a treasure that no one would find anymore. Maybe even High Merchant Murdoc would have paid good money for it.


    ¡°I see you are speechless,¡± she smiled. ¡°My name is Sherran. I¡¯m told it¡¯s an old Empire name.¡± She held out her hand to Dmitri to help him up. Dmitri numbly took her hand, and Sherran pulled him to his feet. She¡¯s strong Dmitri thought. ¡°These calm Ethereal Waves are perfect to rejuvenate myself in. You see, I am a mage and I need to bathe in calm Ethereal water occasionally to keep my magical strength up.¡± She smiled again when Dmitri did not answer and began walking towards the water.


    Dmitri snapped to attention, ¡°wait, are you serious?¡± The girl kept walking, putting a bare foot into the water. Dmitri ran and threw his arms around her. ¡°Stop, you could die. You can¡¯t touch this water unprotected.¡±


    The girl laughed, a deep and resounding laugh, ¡°I know what I¡¯m doing.¡± She let the robe slip, revealing her bare shoulders and let it continue to fall. Dmitri could only stare, his blood beginning to pound through his veins.  But something was not quite right to Dmitri as the robe fell into the water, revealing canvass shorts under the robe and a completely flat, masculine chest.


    ¡°You¡¯re a man,¡± Dmitri stammered. ¡°I thought¡­¡± Dmitri let go and backed away from Sherran, his mouth twisting up, not being able to decide what to say next.


    ¡°Silly boy, I have attained power and true beauty,¡± Sherran didn¡¯t seem to notice or care that Dmitri was slowly backing away. Then Dmitri froze. A blue, barely visible mist began to rise from the water and wrap around Sherran¡¯s body. It faintly glowed for a moment and solidified into a new robe. ¡°And I¡¯m renewed,¡± Sherran said as he let out a small satisfied sigh and smiled. ¡°That was refreshing, boy. Here, take this as a token of my appreciation for letting me use your beach,¡± and Sherran held out his hand.


    Dmitri looked at his hand, ¡°but there¡¯s nothing there.¡± Dmitri looked at Sherran¡¯s face and he was just smiling.


    ¡°Look again,¡± Sherran said. Dmitri looked, starting to feel annoyed, and there was an envelope in his hand now. ¡°I do some work off shore. I¡¯d be happy to have you around, and the pay is good. That envelope will get you to where I work.¡± Dmitri took the envelope and carefully looked it over. It was white and about as long and wide as his hand. It didn''t seem special.


    Stolen story; please report.


    Dmitri looked up to ask Sherran what was inside the envelope, but he was gone. ¡°Sherran, what¡¯s in this envelope?¡± Dmitri called, but there was only silence. Sherran seemed to have just disappeared in the same way he just appeared. And the Gold he had caught was still gone.


    That strange¡­ man had cost him his chance to be a legend for generations in his village. Dmitri had been practicing traditional sphere fishing for years to help make ends meet for him and his mother, and it was finally about to pay off. Dmitri walked over to the palm and sat down hard, knocking the bucket with the silvers over, sending the fish flopping into the surf. ¡°What else could go wrong¡­¡± Dmitri muttered to himself.


    Dmitri sat for a few minutes, using the palm to support his back. Sometimes Dmitri enjoyed sitting and meditating to the steady flow of his calm stretch of beach, but right now he just needed to just forget the tragedy that had befallen him. The day started bad, then he went to a complainer who messed up his buoys, lost a future as a village hero, met a stranger that bathed in Ethereal Water, and lost the Silvers he needed. ¡°Well, at least I still have the Copper to eat,¡± Dmitri said.


    Dmitri had set up his camp site at his beach as soon as he found it. He brought buckets for fishing first, a small pack with survival tools, like flint and a steel knife. The knife was especially useful for striking a flame, scaling and gutting fish, and carving wood. Dmitri liked to carve wood, but the carvings never turned out the way he wanted them too, which was usually a shaved down broken stick. Dmitri gathered up some fallen leaves and branches nearby and built a small fire. After scraping the scales off and gutting the Copper, he placed it over the fire to roast.


    Dmitri grabbed the new spheres, now the only ones he had that weren¡¯t tarnished by foul luck, and walked to the shore line. The water was still gently lapping at the shore. Whatever Sherran had done didn¡¯t seem to have affected the balance of his beach. As was custom he held a sphere in both hands, picturing the fish swimming in it. The spheres were a piece of mechanical magic, where they are set to capture and release by the holder¡¯s will. Artificers are craftsmen, just like carpenters and masons, they build things with a function. Spheres capture and release fish. Dmitri pictured Silvers, Coppers, Slates, and even a Gold, now that he knew what one looked like. Dmitri picked up the buoy with his left hand and casually tossed out the sphere, and almost immediately it began pulling on the rope. Dmitri then threw the buoy underhanded a short distance away from him, just enough not to be splashed. He repeated the process three more times leaving short distances between the buoys.


    The bright yellow buoys really stood out.  His own blue-green hid well in the shore here. Dmitri had enough trouble being the son of the previous village leader who had stood in the way of progress. Fishing where no one knew about it was great because he could get some discreet money without having to deal with the stigma against sphere fishing. The village became a sea hunter village, fishing was generally banned because every able bodied sailor is needed for the hunt. It¡¯s better for the village to think of him as a bum they tolerate then a seditious holdout. Not that he would be welcomed on a hunting vessel.


    Dmitri¡¯s father always knew what to do. His father had an answer for any problem, which is one of the reasons everyone had looked up to him. Surviving was good enough for Dmitri. Leading people would be such a bother, there¡¯s so much more freedom in just taking care of yourself.


    After eating the Copper Dmitri slept through the afternoon. The horizon was a deep red, fading into the deep hues of the night. One of the hunting boats must have been successful. The horizon always bled with the sea beasts, but it seemed more like it was out of blood lust than sadness or anything. The Ethereal Sea fed on the blood of men and beasts, giving birth to more beasts and more opportunities for gold. It might mean death to fall into even calm waters, but gold could buy you luxury, status, and even happiness.


    Dmitri stared out at the buoys. One of the middle ones was slightly wiggling, but the others were still. He managed to catch something. Maybe today wouldn¡¯t be a total waste after all, Dmitri thought. Dmitri was still in his boots, so he waded right into the surf and began pulling on the rope. Maybe he had managed to catch the Gold again. It might still be hanging around. Dmitri might still have that future as a village legend if I go back with a Gold in my hands. The top of the sphere popped to the surface like a bubble as Dmitri pulled. He eagerly grabbed at the top of the sphere and pulled it up. Inside was a blue fish. Dmitri had never seen or heard of a Blue before, but, logically, it must be a Blue. The old artificer must know something about it. He¡¯s the one that knows how to use what seemed like random things to create something useful. Dmitri looped his belt through the top of the fishing sphere, put out his small fire, and headed back to town.


    From a distance Dmitri could tell the town was energized. There must have been a large beast pulled in, and in that case, there would be some rowdy celebrating going on for days. From a distance it looked like two ships were docked. If they used two ships it must have been a large haul. Dmitri kept to the outskirts of town, not wanting to run into any drunks especially because they often liked to show how great they were by pushing the village bum around.


    Dmitri reached the artificer workshop in no time, managing not to see a single person. He had expected to see some revelers scattered about everywhere. Dmitri knocked at the side door and waited for Fedore to appear. He almost never left the workshop since he was always working on crafting something. The door creaked open and a hand grabbed Dmitri by the shoulder. It was Fedore¡¯s father, Yoseph.


    ¡°Son, you have them, don¡¯t you. I¡¯m sorry I gave you those things, I should have just left the past as the past,¡± Yoseph said. His face was scrunched up, his eyes were blood shot, and he was completely unfocused. ¡°Just give it to me, I¡¯ll take them and try to keep them off your trail. Your father was my good friend, I owe him.¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Dmitri asked,  but Yoseph spun him around, yanked the sphere off of his belt, breaking the clasp. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    ¡°You caught the Guardian, son,¡± Yoseph¡¯s eyes were bright. Dmitri couldn¡¯t tell if he was mad, angry, or something, maybe even scared. ¡°That is the guardian in your sphere¡­ but why is it so small?¡±


    ¡°This Blue is something important?¡± Dmitri asked as he freed himself from Yoseph¡¯s grasp. ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of any guardian.¡±


    ¡°This is the Guardian. It has been protecting our village for generations. The Guardian has protected and kept our people safe from sea beasts and Ethereal Mists. It¡¯s a village secret, but this must be why things went bad¡­¡± Yoseph was mostly talking to himself. What happened here?


    ¡°There was a large beast, Dmitri,¡± Yoseph continued, ¡°and it destroyed the Sea Breeze, while the other two boats barely managed to escape.¡± A sea beast took down one of the High Merchant¡¯s hunter ships, Dmitri could hardly believe something so large could be taken down by a beast. The High Merchant¡¯s ships were practically floating fortresses. The beast must have been huge. ¡°People want blood out there, and there¡¯s a lot of talk going around that you are the cause of this, that you brought such misfortune. There are even some saying your father is using you as a conduit for revenge.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s just crazy. I was sitting on a beach napping and carving all day. I haven¡¯t done anything,¡± but it didn¡¯t even seem like Yoseph could hear Dmitri. This was getting scary, and Dmitri noticed that he could hear shouting coming from the village center. This is absolutely unreal, Dmitri thought. I need to get out of here.


    Dmitri started backing away from Yoseph, ¡°yes, that¡¯s right, get out of here. You need to run now.¡± Dmitri didn¡¯t need to stop and think about it, he dropped his pack and ran off into the dark, away from town.


    Dmitri ran until he felt a safe distance from the village. He couldn¡¯t hear anything, except the wind and birds. His legs were burning, his lungs were hurt, and his mind was racing. Dmitri took a deep breath and attempted to calm himself down. Everything was just wrong. For a brief moment, everything was going to be perfect Dmitri had though when he saw the Gold, but now everything was becoming so bizarre. Yoseph had a strange look in his eye, it was like he was changing right there at that moment. But why would that happen? How could his whole world be suddenly turned upside-down like this?


    Standing around in the dark wouldn¡¯t get him anywhere, and he had heard that there were some predators that could be dangerous to a single person at night. It¡¯s just Dmitri had never been outside of the village much before except to fish in the Ethereal Sea. He should still be able to collect his few supplies by his beach. He¡¯d just grab what he can and make his way to another populated area. Probably it would be best to just follow the coast south until he found another village or town where he could continue his life fishing.


    The walk south to his beach was uneventful, except for Dmitri dropping to a crouch at every noise he heard. The red sky, the angry yells he heard, and Yoseph¡¯s reaction had Dmitri ready to run and hide. Dmitri¡¯s whole life had been so peaceful, except for when his father dropped into the sea one day and the resulting backlash from the village becoming a hunter village when his father had championed staying a small, quiet fishing village. Dmitri came across the stream before he knew it, and looked downstream. There were no lights and he didn¡¯t see any movement. Although, Dmitri noticed there was something shining faintly on the ground, next to the palm, which caught his attention. Dmitri walked over to the palm, trying to watch every direction as he went, until he tripped and landed with a thud.


    Dmitri¡¯s palm landed on the object and he instantly felt a warm sense of peace spread into his body, despite the pain from the trip. Whatever this was, he felt much better now holding this¡­ ball. Dmitri felt warmer and reassured. Things were going to be ok, he could feel it like a light radiating inside of his chest. Even though Dmitri felt lighter, as he picked himself up to get a look at the object, he knocked over his survival pouch, dropping an envelope in front of his face. Well, maybe I have a better option here, Dmitri thought. But before opening this letter, what was this thing making him feel better?


    Dmitri¡¯s eyes widened when he turned his head to see the object, and the good feeling was gone. The shiny thing on the ground was a sphere, and swimming inside of the sphere was the Blue, or what Yoseph called the guardian. How, in the divine realms, did it get here? Dmitri had never seen a Blue before, and the rope latch was broken on the sphere. This had to be the same one. And it¡¯s back here, where he had caught it, if he had actually caught it.


    Dmitri walked over to the shore, and released the Blue into the stream right before it emptied into the sea. The Blue swam in a small circle, keeping an eye on Dmitri. It felt like the fish was watching him. Then it suddenly sped off out into the sea. That should be one less thing to worry about.


    Dmitri walked back to the palm, picked up his survival bag, and looped it into his belt. He hadn¡¯t seen many envelopes before, but his father believed he should have a basic education. Dmitri¡¯s father would often said education makes a man whole, so that he will always know he doesn¡¯t know everything. Dmitri had learned to read, write, and some other boring academic stuff that had nothing to do with fishing, sailing, or eating in general.


    The envelope was unremarkably plain and very white. It had no seal keeping it closed, so Dmitri just flipped the envelope back open, but before he could reach inside he heard a whistling sound. It was faintly familiar, but alarmingly loud. Whatever that was it could bring people around to see what it was. Dmitri looked around, starting to feel his chest tighten. Nothing seemed odd and there were no creatures or people around. But there was a rapid movement just beyond his vision in the sea. Bobbing up and down was a yellow buoy. Dmitri¡¯s father¡¯s buoys would start to whistle when a panicked creature would thrash around in it, it would bring a fisherman to it, so the man could pull up the sphere and capture whatever was caught.


    Dmitri grabbed his boots and rushed to the buoy. He grabbed the rope and began to haul the rope in as fast as he could. That whistling sound needed to be stopped before it brought unwanted attention. As the sphere popped up, Dmitri could see a fish was swimming in circles, thrashing the sphere side to side. When Dmitri grabbed the sphere and looked inside, it was the Blue. What¡¯s wrong with this fish? Hopefully, it¡¯s learned to avoid spheres now, Dmitri thought as he poured the fish back into the sea. Dmitri sighed and threw the buoy and sphere into the sand up on the beach. He didn¡¯t need that again. And then the next buoy began to whistle. What is going on? He waded over to the next buoy as fast as he could without splashing the water everywhere. Dmitri needed to silence the buoy, but didn¡¯t need to catch Ethereal Sickness in the process. Dmitri pulled in the sphere, and thrashing in circles in the sphere was the Blue.


    ¡°OK, fish. I hope you¡¯ve learned to avoid these things now. I¡¯m starting to think you¡¯re passing into the spheres on purpose. Although, they¡¯re made to not be seen, so¡­¡± Dmitri felt embarrassed talking to the Blue and dumped it. ¡°Leave me alone now, you¡¯re free.¡± Dmitri turned to head back to shore, took one step, and the last buoy began whistling, louder than the other two had. That fish must have wanted him caught. He shuffled to the last buoy and began the process again. The Blue was circling in the sphere, it seemed frantic to Dmitri. ¡°This is the last buoy out here,¡± Dmitri said to the sphere. The fish was thrashing around in the sphere, the fish seemed afraid to him.


    ¡°You want to stay with me, is that what¡¯s going on?¡± Dmitri asked, while feeling incredibly stupid. It¡¯s just a fish. But then the Blue stopped and swam to meet his eyes. It had strikingly blue eyes. Dmitri just looked into those eyes for a moment and sighed, ¡°fine, but what the heck am I going to do for a fish¡­ or what is a fish going to do for me?¡± This is just ridiculous. Dmitri waded back to the beach and walked to the palm. Dmitri cut the sphere from the rope leaving a bit of length left to tie the sphere around his neck. He might look like the second coming of Vandaar the Fish Prophet, bit it would have to do for now.


    Now for that envelope, Dmitri thought. He pulled it out of the pouch at his belt. The letter had writing on the front now. For a friendly visit, feed me. Feed it¡­ like food? What does an envelope eat anyways¡­? Dmitri opened the envelope, but it was empty.


    The wind had died down, and it seemed warmer than before. Actually, it was starting to seem brighter too, even though it wasn¡¯t even close to midnight yet. ¡°There he is, just like I said, he¡¯s even wearing a fishing sphere,¡± Fedore said with his arm stretched out, that merchant smile on his face and some bruises. He really could keep that smile up through a lot, Dmitri thought as his body froze in place. Fedore was at the top of the rise behind him with Frederick Heftig, the officially appointed mayor and first supporter of High Merchant Murdoc, and about a dozen village huntsmen dressed in their canvass hunt uniforms with torches and harpoons.


    ¡°Get me the guardian, we don¡¯t need the other,¡± Frederick said. He waved his hand at the man closest to him. The huntsman seemed to move slowly while throwing his harpoon at Dmitri, but Dmitri couldn¡¯t dodge or even react. A flash of pain exploded through Dmitri¡¯s shoulder as the harpoon tore through him and nailing Dmitri to the palm.


    Blood was trickling down Dmitri¡¯s arm. He couldn¡¯t tear his eyes from the harpoon piercing though his shoulder and the ribbons of red making their way down his arm and torso. Dmitri¡¯s vision slowly became swallowed in blackness, but he could make out the red, it was starting to pool into the envelope, which was locked and crumpled in his grasp. It¡¯s getting ruined and Dmitri hadn¡¯t figured out what it was yet.

 Chapter 2: A new place

    Dmitri wasn¡¯t on the beach anymore. He wasn¡¯t standing anymore. Actually, Dmitri was lying down in a bed. He must have been asleep or something. It felt like only a second ago he had been at his beach¡­ with a harpoon in his shoulder. Dmitri felt at his shoulder, expecting to find a large hole, but his shoulder was fine. Looking around the room didn¡¯t have any answers. Dmitri couldn¡¯t see any bandages or other things that might suggest he was with or near a healer. Dmitri wasn¡¯t even wearing any bandages, and he noticed, not wearing anything. His clothes were nowhere to be seen.


    Well, I can¡¯t just lay here forever, and I¡¯m a little cold, Dmitri thought. He got up from the bed, keeping the white linen wrapped around him. The room was very plain, with gray walls that were smooth. There was light coming from a sphere hanging from the middle of the ceiling. Dmitri had heard of there being different kind of spheres used for luxuries like light, but he had never seen one before in person. He must be somewhere rich. Although, the furniture in here is plain and spare, so if this is a spare room or a servant¡¯s room, then it¡¯s definitely a rich person¡¯s house to have a light sphere in this room.


    A knock came from the door, and the handle started to turn. Dmitri looked around the room, trying to find something that might help him look dignified. It would be better to give a dignified thank you to whoever saved him than to have to struggle protecting his dignity while expressing his gratitude. I guess I¡¯m not going to find anything to help, I just need to thank the guy that saved me, Dmitri thought. The door slowly creaked open, and a woman stepped in. She was shorter than Dmitri, although Dmitri was tall, she wore gray slippers, a gray skirt just passed her knees, with a gray blouse and blazer. Although, she wore a plain metallic mask that hid most of her face except for a slot revealing her left eye, a deep blue color. Her silver hair was pulled back behind her and looked like it might be shoulder length. She actually looked around Dmitri¡¯s age. And she was a young woman, looking at him. Dmitri could feel the heat rushing into his face.


    ¡°My master requested that you be sent to him as soon as you regained consciousness,¡± the masked girl said. She stood in the doorway, looking at Dmitri, waiting.


    ¡°Umm, I¡­ need some clothes¡­eh, well, umm¡­ what¡¯s your name?¡± Dmitri felt like he hadn¡¯t stammered too badly. The girl remained motionless, staring at him blankly.


    ¡°The master requests your presence now, please follow me, your sheet will be sufficient,¡± the masked girl turned and walked out the door. Dmitri almost tripped on the sheet as he pulled it tighter around himself, doing his best to make the sheet look presentable.


    Outside of the door was a corridor with a few other doors. The walls were also similar to what he saw in the room, except there were sphere lights placed at regular intervals all the way up and down the hall. ¡°It is not far, the master is in his workshop around the corner,¡± the masked girl said as Dmitri was looking around at the hallway. She was walking at a brisk pace, and Dmitri had to hurry to keep up with her while he struggled to keep the blanket around him.


    When Dmitri came around the corner, a large metal door blocked the way. The girl walked to the door and placed her hand on a panel in the center. The panel lit up bright green, and then the door split with the same green light and opened outward into the hallway. The room inside was filled with green light, making it seem darker than the hallway, filled with the clear light spheres. It took a moment for Dmitri¡¯s eyes to adjust. The room was large, maybe the size of his old town¡¯s inn. Tables and shelves were everywhere, lined with papers and glass containers with a myriad of strange things in them, from glowing liquids to organic masses. There was even a large tank of water with three Coppers swimming inside of it. Long glass tubes snaked their way in and out of the walls, and there were more light spheres in the room that were glowing green or white.


    The masked girl walked straight into the labyrinthine mess, walking in a straight line towards the center of the room. She appeared to be walking over the floor. Dmitri took a step forward, and his foot stopped before touching the floor he could see. There was a clear material above the floor, protecting it for whatever reason.


    ¡°Shara, has my guest come to,¡± a familiar voice asked. Dmitri walked forward, looking around a tall bookshelf. Sherran was standing at the edge of a large circular hole, which seemed to be in the very middle of the room. ¡°Ah, there you are, my little fisher boy.¡± He had a wide smile on his face, revealing perfect white teeth. Sherran had his hair pulled back in a ponytail with a bright red ribbon, and he was wearing close cut white pants and long sleeve shirt. He looks more like a man like this, Dmitri thought. ¡°I hadn¡¯t expected you to visit me so soon, I would have prepared myself more suitably for you if I had only known.¡± Sherran walked over to Dmitri and placed his hands on Dmitri¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Although, I just don¡¯t know what to do with you now,¡± Sherran said. Dmitri was probably better off with this strange man deciding his fate than with the hunters from his village who had already decided to end it. ¡°Shara tells me that your coming had more to do with a harpoon protruding from your shoulder than you figuring out my little riddle.¡± Sherran let go of Dmitri and stepped back.


    ¡°Thank you very much for saving me,¡± Dmitri said, ¡°I am deeply in your debt for having saved my life.¡± Dmitri had said his thanks, now he only needed to wait for whatever would happen next.


    Sherran¡¯s eyes gleamed, ¡°My dear boy, I am very tempted to have you pay that debt to me.¡± Sherran sighed, ¡°But I can hardly collect on what doesn¡¯t belong to me. You saved your own life.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m still grateful to you, Sherran,¡± Dmitri said, ¡°I just barely escaped death thanks to that envelope.¡± For better or for worse, it seems like my lot is cast, Dmitri thought.


    Sherran smiled, ¡°Well, boy, tell me your name.¡±


    ¡°My name is Dmitri, I was a fisherman,¡± Dmitri said.


    Sherran put his index and middle fingers to his lips, ¡°hmm, I just might have something for you. Do you want to work for me? I won¡¯t pay you, but you will receive room and board. Truthfully, I won¡¯t ask much from you either.¡±


    That doesn¡¯t sound bad. Sherran is definitely a weird person, but he has been nice to me so far. I should probably answer him right now, even if I do have so many questions still, Dmitri thought. ¡°That sounds good to me,¡± Dmitri said.


    ¡°Excellent, I¡¯ll enjoy seeing you around here more,¡± Sherran seemed very happy. ¡°Shara, I want you to now be Dmitri¡¯s assistant. Dmitri be kind to her, she is my only daughter from all of this. Shara, please tell Dorvyn he will attend me from now on. Run along now, you two,¡± Sheran said as he turned back towards the hole in the ground.


    ¡°The master has dismissed us, it would be best for us to leave him to his experiments,¡± the masked girl, Shara, said. She turned Dmitri around by his shoulders and pushed on his back, rapidly taking him out of the room. After the doors closed behind them, Shara said, ¡°The master¡¯s workshop can be dangerous when he loses focus.¡±


    ¡°What is dangerous?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°He is working with magic, magic is dangerous,¡± Shara said nonchalantly. Dmitri had never heard of people using magic before except for when his mom had wanted to scare him into behaving as a child. Magic is a fairy tale, isn¡¯t it?


    ¡°You look confused, magic is life here. Aren¡¯t there artificers where you come from?¡± Shara asked.


    ¡°Yes, but what does that have to do with magic?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°They use magic to construct those items, and the things those items accomplish is magic, like those fishing spheres you had,¡± Shara sounded like she was lecturing a child. It was making Dmitri feel annoyed. ¡°Furthermore, don¡¯t you realize that just using a fishing sphere is a form of magic?¡±


    ¡°Wait just a second now. I know I¡¯ve been saved, but I don¡¯t appreciate being talked down too,¡± Dmitri said, unable to continue holding in his feelings.


    ¡°I offended you?¡± Shara asked. She sounded slightly worried. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. This is always how the master speaks to us. He is almost always teaching us.¡± She sounded hurt, and she was looking down. Dmitri could imagine that deep blue eye becoming watery.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry I lost my temper,¡± Dmitri said. Shara lifted her head to look at Dmitri. Her eye was watery.


    ¡°It didn¡¯t bother me at all,¡± Shara said, her voice back to its normal, neutral composure. She turned away from Dmitri and walked down the hall, ¡°follow me back to your room, it should be ready by now.¡±


    ¡°OK,¡± Dmitri said, following her at his own pace the short distance to the room they had just left from not long ago. It should be ready for what, Dmitri wondered.


    Shara opened the door and immediately entered the room. Dmitri wasn¡¯t far behind her, but immediately stepped back. The room had completely changed. It was bigger now, similarly colored, but there was what looked like a well in the far corner from the door, the bed was bigger and looked much more luxurious with red and yellow striped sheets. There was also a large desk placed next to the bed and a dresser. The dresser seemed to have a number of items on it, like quills and papers. The entire back wall blocked by glass with just enough space to walk around the well. Inside the glass was the Blue, swimming up and down. Dmitri thought the Blue looked excited to see him.


    ¡°Guest of the master-¡± a very tall masked man in a gray uniform similar to Shara¡¯s, with black hair and dark eyes began to speak, but Shara interrupted him.


    ¡°This is Lord Dmitri, he will be working for the master now,¡± Shara said. The big man nodded to Shara. ¡°And Dorvyn, you will be assisting the master now.¡± Dorvyn nodded again.


    ¡°Umm, just Dmitri please,¡± Dmitri said. Being called lord or another title would just feel uncomfortable.


    ¡°As you wish, Dmitri,¡± Dorvyn continued, ¡°we had some things prepared for your duties. Our master anticipated what needs he could. If you feel you want anything changed please let me or Shara know. The dresser is a Tailing Dresser, hold your hand to the door for a few seconds, picture firmly what you want, and it will flash green inside. You should be able to get almost any clothes you want out of it. Please remember to only try to picture clothes from it, it could cause feedback, seriously injuring you if you try to make it do something else. We have also prepared a desk with writing supplies, and a suitable habitat for the pet you brought with you. You can find the sphere you carried it with in the trunk by your bed.¡± Dorvyn stopped to take a breath, ¡°and with that, if you¡¯ll please excuse me, I¡¯ll allow Shara to handle the rest.¡± Dorvyn bowed to Dmitri and made his way out of the room, closing the door behind him.


    ¡°Wow,¡± Dmitri said, while looking around the room. This was all his.


    ¡°I know, he can be long winded, and after all that, he forgot to mention the bathroom,¡± Shara said. From what Dmitri could see of her eye, she seemed to be smiling.


    ¡°What¡¯s a bathroom?¡± Dmitri asked. He had never heard of a bathroom. Sounds like a room for bathing.


    ¡°Umm, it¡¯s a room with a bath and a toilet. You use the bath to bathe, and you use the toilet to¡­ relieve yourself,¡± Shara said. Clearly it wasn¡¯t a topic she wanted to discuss, Dmitri thought. He would just have to figure it out on his own later. ¡°If you were wondering,¡± Shara began, ¡°you can put your fishing sphere to the glass, which would allow your pet to enter or leave the sphere. The aquarium wall is also biologically adjusted to provide for your pet¡¯s care.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Shara,¡± Dmitri said. ¡°Now, how do I get some food?¡±


    Shara walked over to the desk. ¡°There is a drawer here that can be used to summon up some food from the kitchens. Simply write a note of what you want, and a chef will make it to the best of their ability. It only takes a few moments to reach you,¡± Shara said. She looked at Dmitri with a worried look, her exposed brow crinkled, ¡°I''m sorry, I hope I¡¯m not explaining too much again.¡±


    ¡°Oh no, I¡¯m sorry, please don¡¯t worry about that. Everything here is just so different and new for me. Thank you for explaining all of this to me Shara,¡± Dmitri said. I hope she doesn¡¯t keep apologizing to me, I wonder why she¡¯s like that, Dmitri thought. She seemed fragile to Dmitri, but she didn¡¯t seem to want that to be too obvious or that¡¯s how Dmitri saw her.


    ¡°OK then,¡± Shara said, ¡°I¡¯ll need to take my leave for a while, until I come back, make yourself comfortable and familiarize yourself with the room.


    ¡°Alright, I guess I¡¯ll just wait here then,¡± Dmitri said while taking a seat in front of the desk. He was feeling hungry and something warm to eat would be perfect right now.


    ¡°Oh, and do not wander far from the hall, you may be under my master¡¯s protection, but there is a lot more to this place and you will need everything explained to you first,¡± Shara said. She walked up to Dmitri, waiting for his answer.


    ¡°OK, I got it. I¡¯ll wait here safely,¡± Dmitri said while examining the quills and papers at the desk. ¡°What is this place anyways?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°An island,¡± Shara said as she walked out the door, closing it behind her.


    ¡°An island,¡± Dmitri could feel pins and needles through his body. Islands were said to be rogue nations, neither part of the Union nor part of the Lin Empire. From what Dmitri¡¯s father said when schooling him, islands are small and relatively weak, so they don¡¯t impact politics much, but it is a fact that all islands are rogue. Just to be living inside a small piece of land deep inside the Ethereal Seas, surrounded by waters of death had never seemed sane to Dmitri. He had only believed that the rogue islands were some kind of old wives tale or just an old fisherman¡¯s story. His father died by falling into the sea. Dmitri¡¯s father just fell in, and that was it, he was gone and never seen again. How could the people here trust that the whole island won¡¯t just be swallowed up in the Ethereal Sea and vanish? Weren¡¯t there stories of that happening to ships? It could probably happen to a small land mass then.


    Dmitri got up from the desk. He had suddenly lost his appetite. Placing his hands on the glass wall, he stared at his own reflection. Was he really safe from death now, or had he just traded an immediate death for one slow to approach him? Dmitri had been so comfortable before, and now everything was just spiraling.


    While the room felt like it was spinning to Dmitri, a tapping sound distracted him. Dmitri walked towards the door, steadied himself and opened the door. No one was there. Dmitri closed the door again. He could still hear a faint tapping sound. What is that, Dmitri thought. Where is it coming from? Dmitri cocked his head the direction he thought it was coming from, slowly taking steps towards it. Step by step Dmitri followed the sound, until he knocked his ear into the glass hard enough to make it feel numb. While rubbing his ear, Dmitri looked at the glass. The Blue was at his head level, staring straight into Dmitri¡¯s eyes. There was something there in its sharp blue eyes. If Dmitri didn¡¯t know better, he¡¯d think that it was trying to get his attention, to comfort him. But that would be impossible. Guardian or whatever it was, a fish is a fish, Dmitri thought. But Dmitri stood there for a few minutes, looking back at the fish and feeling better.


    There was a loud knocking on the door, waking Dmitri up. Dmitri picked himself up off the bed, his head feeling heavy. ¡°Did you sleep with the lights on, Lord Dmitri?¡± Shara asked, taking on a tone that made Dmitri grit his teeth.


    ¡°Please, just Dmitri is fine. Lord, master, or most titles just aren¡¯t me. Good morning to you too,¡± Dmitri didn¡¯t feel happy to be lectured first thing after waking up from sleeping. Although, Dmitri couldn¡¯t tell if he had napped or slept for an entire night. Dmitri looked over at the aquarium, the Blue was floating there calmly. Shara had stopped walking, her eye seemed to be glaring through the slot on her mask. Shara had her hair down in tales on each side of her shoulders this time.


    ¡°The lights can be controlled with this panel here, by the door. Slide your hand down the panel to dim the lights and turn them off, like this,¡± Shara slid her hand down the panel, and the room went dark, except for some plants glowing in the aquarium. ¡°And just slide your hand up to turn them on,¡± Shara said, once Dmitri could see her, her hand was at the top of the square by the door. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll be the one teaching you almost everything, won¡¯t I?¡± Shara mumbled to herself. Dmitri had heard her, but decided against a quick retort.


    ¡°Why would you day that?¡± Dmitri asked. Shara dropped her head a little, hiding her eye from his view. Dmitri was quickly learning to see this as a sign of embarrassment.


    ¡°The master has summoned you,¡± Shara said, ¡°have you managed to eat something?¡± She might have sounded concerned if she hadn¡¯t just been glaring at him.


    ¡°Actually, I did manage to, and it was delicious,¡± but it had taken Dmitri a while to figure it out. He ended up placing little notes in every drawer. Unfortunately, he had written roast Copper on every note, and they had all disappeared. Dmitri would have to try a different food on each note next time, so that he could figure out which drawer actually worked. Better that than asking Shara for help, especially when she was treating him like a child.


    ¡°That¡¯s very good,¡± Shara sounded genuinely happy for him. ¡°Well, we should go see the master first before anything else. Please follow me, Dmitri,¡± Shara said while walking out the door.


    Dmitri jumped up from bed and jumped into the blue canvass slacks and blue long sleeve collared shirt he had managed to get from the tailor wardrobe. Shara had seen enough of him in a state of undress. She seemed really odd wearing that mask all the time, but she was woman enough for Dmitri to be embarrassed. ¡°Are you coming?¡± Shara¡¯s voice asked from right outside the door. Dmitri just did a quick fisher¡¯s knot with the black sash for the pants and slipped on the black slippers. Dmitri took a quick look at the reflection of himself in the mirror. He was a bit taller than most in his village, his father had been one of the biggest men in the village from what Dmitri could remember. Dmitri thought he looked too thin, especially in these clothes, matched precisely with his frame. His light brown hair lay back flat and close cut, and he had his mother¡¯s hazel eyes.


    Dmitri stepped out from the door cautiously. Shara just stared at him. Dmitri¡¯s stomach began to twist, ¡°it was the best I could do. And I don¡¯t think this outfit is so bad,¡± Dmitri said.


    ¡°Oh, umm, it¡¯s fine. I can show you some tips later if you like. We shouldn¡¯t be keeping the master waiting like this,¡± Shara said and started off down the hall quick enough for Dmitri to need to hurry after her.


    Upon entering Sherran¡¯s workshop, Dmitri saw Sherran standing by the center of the hole in the ground again like last time. He was carefully observing something. Dorvyn was off to the side deeper into the workshop, standing ready. ¡°Dmitri, I¡¯m so glad you came. I hope your first conscience night here was to your liking,¡± Sherran said with a grin as Dmitri approached.


    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°Yes, I had a nice meal and a restful sleep,¡± Dmitri said as he walked closer to Sherran. Dmitri wanted to see what was inside the hole, so he walked straight over to Sherran. When Dmitri was about four steps away from Sherran, Shara grabbed his arm.


    ¡°Be careful, magic is at work here, and you don¡¯t know what kind of affects it will have,¡± Shara said. She had a tight grip on his arm. Dmitri didn¡¯t think she would have had such a strong grip just by looking at her.


    ¡°It¡¯s ok Shara. Come here and see for yourself Dmitri,¡± Sherran said, absently waving a hand over while keeping his eyes focused on the hole. Shara let go and stepped back, angling her mask down. He needed to ask her why they had to wear masks with their uniforms.


    As Dmitri approached the hole he caught a familiar scent in the air. Mainlanders said this smell was like lightning, but Dmitri knew the smell from only one source, the Ethereal Sea. Dmitri stood next to Sherran and looked down. The hole went straight down. Chains from the ceiling dropped down into the waters, which sloshed back and forth against the walls of the well. ¡°Are you fishing or something?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°Yes, something like that,¡± Sherran said. Sherran turned to look at Dmitri, ¡°oh, I love that outfit on you.¡± Dmitri could only laugh a little at that. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you know or not, but this is a rogue island. Specifically, this is The Ironman¡¯s Nest, an island known for its strong defenses. Union, Empire, and pirate raiders have never breached the island in over twenty years. Which is one reason I moved my research here,¡± Sherran explained this all to Dmitri while studying Dmitri closely. ¡°I¡¯ll be sending you experimental spheres and buoys I make. Just use them like normal in the Ethereal Well in your room. Shara will document all of the results and send them to me,¡± Sherran said. The well in my room is a shaft to the Ethereal Sea? It¡¯s a good thing I didn¡¯t explore that part of the room yesterday, Dmitri thought.


    ¡°That sounds pretty good to me,¡± Dmitri said. He had been worried that Sherran would want something complicated or dangerous. But Dmitri liked fishing. Fishing is what he wanted to do. This was a great deal.


    ¡°I like that smile, Dmitri,¡± Sherran said, ¡°don¡¯t you think so too Shara?¡± Dmitri turned to look at Shara, but she had her mask angled down, as if she hadn¡¯t moved since the last time he saw her.


    Sherran sighed loudly, ¡°that would be a good start, Dmitri. How about we have dinner tonight in my banquet hall, I hardly get to use it? I need to explain some things to you anyway. Shara, you¡¯ll see to the preparations.¡±


    ¡°Yes, master,¡± Shara said and bowed slightly.


    ¡°Thank you for visiting me Dmitri, but I must continue my work now,¡± Sherran said while turning to study the ethereal water again. Dmitri thought he could see some buoys bobbing vigorously in the water down the shaft. Something was ready.


    Shara grabbed Dmitri by the shoulders, like last time, turned him around and led him back to his room. ¡°The master will let you know about his work when he is ready, Dmitri, so please wait until then,¡± Shara said. Shara had an edge to her voice, something like fear or worry. ¡°Do you know you think a lot?¡± Shara asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m more used to being on my own I guess. After my father died, my village started up hunting sea beasts, and I just continued on fishing by myself. I guess I got used to spending my days on the shore, only speaking to people every now and then,¡± Dmitri said. He didn¡¯t have much of a need to talk to others much. His mother never got over her husband¡¯s death, most of the village had seen him as a nuisance, and Fedore was more of a business relationship. Dmitri was a legacy from his father the village didn¡¯t want. ¡°Things just ended up that way.¡±


    ¡°I too am not used to a lot of things, but I am learning. And I¡¯m happy that my life is progressing the way it is. My brothers have not all been as fortunate as I have, and I hope to be able to help them one day. That¡¯s why I do my best for the master and his research, so I hope you will do your best to help us too,¡± Shara said. She was intently looking at him through her mask like she was looking for something.


    ¡°I always do my best when fishing. It keeps me going. Umm, so I hope I¡¯ll be helping you,¡± Dmitri said. Shara looked down, but Dmitri knew this time it wasn¡¯t because of embarrassment. She was sad. Dmitri felt like he needed to do something, anything, so he stepped forward and hugged Shara. Shara immediately went stiff, but after a moment she relaxed and pressed into Dmitri¡¯s embrace. She felt so small in his arms, and she was so warm. And even though it made Dmitri feel guilty, her hair smelled good too.


    After a blissful moment, Shara pushed away. ¡°I¡¯ve got to go, I¡¯m sorry about that,¡± Shara said. And before Dmitri could say anything, she had disappeared down the opposite end of the hall. Dmitri turned toward his room door and walked in.


    ¡°That was nice¡­ and weird,¡± Dmitri said. Dmitri sat down on the bed and looked around the room. Noticing the well in the corner of the room, Dmitri remembered how Sharran said it was really an Ethereal Well, down into the Ethereal Sea. So that meant it was Ethereal Sea right below him. Things were turning out nicely here though. Dmitri was being asked to fish, and it was for some important experiment. Feeling important and useful felt pretty good, Dmitri thought. Dmitri walked over to the well and looked carefully at it. It had a steel cover over it, and it didn¡¯t seem to have any handles or levers to open it. Then Dmitri remembered how Shara had taught him to use the light sphere, so he looked for a panel or square. Everything in this place seemed to have been made by an artificer. After searching for a few moments Dmitri found a small panel oriented towards the middle of the room below the rim of the well. Dmitri kneeled down to look closely at it. He placed his hand on the panel and it flashed blue. There was a quick swooshing sound, and then the room was filled with the scent of the Ethereal Sea. Dmitri stood up and looked down the well. It was a lot like the shaft in Sherran¡¯s workshop, but Dmitri¡¯s well was a lot smaller. The water level was a lot higher too, but the surface of the water was very calm, much like the water at Dmitri¡¯s beach. If it wasn¡¯t for the lack of a sky and cool breeze Dmitri thought he might be able to fool himself into thinking he was at his beach.


    But things were different now. Dmitri needed to work to maintain his stability here. He could still love fishing, its simplicity and ability to provide, but he now had to meet Sherran¡¯s expectations. And he¡¯d be interacting with Shara on a regular basis, which Dmitri had to admit, wasn¡¯t so bad. This was still a lot more than he had to deal with before. His mom was easy to just pass by, her time had stopped when his father died. And Fedore, with that permanent smile, was really just business. I hope Fedore is doing ok now, Dmitri thought. He had taken at least a little beating before taking the hunters to Dmitri. Fedore and Dmitri hadn¡¯t really been friends, but Fedore hadn¡¯t been such a bad guy. My family¡¯s village is a thing of the past now, just like my father, Dmitri thought.


    Dmitri was starting to get bored. All the artifice objects in his room were real marvels, but they were only for providing for his needs. Being restricted to this small patch of hallway and his room didn¡¯t allow for much to see. The Blue was floating in a corner of the aquarium, probably sleeping. And then Dmitri remembered he had a fishing sphere, the one he had been holding the Blue the night he came to this place. Dmitri walked over to the wardrobe and opened the bottom drawer. The sphere was there, along with the clothes he had been wearing that night. The clothes had been sewn, but there were still blood stains all over the clothes. Dmitri felt his shoulder where the harpoon had pierced through him. The pain was over when he blacked out, but still, that had really hurt. It felt like the pain would flare back to life with the memory of it. Dmitri just needed to push it out of his mind.


    Dmitri reached down, grabbed the sphere and re-tied some rope on it. It would be good to do some practice fishing with what he was used to before trying anything new. The waters here may fish a bit different than the beach at his old home. Dmitri wondered if it could throw off his technique. Dmitri felt a little excited walking back to the Ethereal Well, he might be able to catch some new kinds of fish. And Well fishing in the comfort of his room sounded really convenient, except for the part where ethereal water was deadly. Fishing in his room back at his mother¡¯s house would have really ruined the perfection of having his own beach, and it would have made it harder to avoid the people always looking down on him in the village.


    Dmitri held the sphere in his hands, picturing fish in his sphere. Coppers, Silvers, or a Gold would be good catches. A Gold wouldn¡¯t be worth anything much here though, except for its rumored healing ability when eaten. Dmitri tried picturing a Blue in the sphere too. Is it even possible to catch something like the Blue? Dmitri needed to give the Blue a name, it really was turning into a pet for him. Dmitri tried to let the sphere drop into the water gently and coiled the end of the rope in his hand since he didn¡¯t have a buoy for it. The sphere slipped down into the water and quickly disappeared from Dmitri¡¯s view. Dmitri sat down with his back to the aquarium, with a little distance between him and the well.


    After some time, a knock came from the door, and after a brief wait, Shara came in through the door. She had changed into a blue dress, matching the clothes Dmitri was wearing, with a black belt around her waist. The dress went down to her shins and was as high as her collar. It was a fitted dress, showing off her figure. Shara was also wearing blue gemstone earrings dangling from her ears with her hair pulled back into a ponytail. Shara just stood at the door after closing it behind her, looking at Dmitri. Those colors are good on her, or at least they¡¯re better than the constant gray uniform.


    ¡°Is something wrong with how I¡¯m dressed?¡± Shara asked. Dmitri hadn¡¯t realized he had been staring until he noticed she was uncomfortable. It would probably be better to compliment her.


    ¡°Feel free to sit down, I was just fishing a little bit,¡± Dmitri said, ¡°the dress actually looks very nice. I like it.¡± Shara moved to Dmitri¡¯s desk, and turned the chair to face him. Dmitri felt heat rising in his cheeks.


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Shara said. He couldn¡¯t see her face clearly because of that mask. Dmitri couldn¡¯t handle the curiosity anymore.


    ¡°Shara, why are you always wearing that mask?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°Oh, that¡¯s just me,¡± Shara said. She got up, placed her hand on the right side of the tailor wardrobe, causing a pink flash, and opened it. Shara pulled a black shawl with black crystals on the trim out of the wardrobe. She opened the other side of the wardrobe, revealing a mirror on the door. Shara then proceeded to make herself busy adjusting the shawl to get it just right on her shoulders.


    ¡°That¡¯s not really an answer,¡± Dmitri said. He wanted to push the issue more, but then his hand was getting pulled towards the well. He caught something. Dmitri jumped up and began pulling on the rope, noticing he had surprised Shara.


    ¡°You caught something?¡± Shara asked, while walking towards Dmitri.


    ¡°Yes, and it feels kind of heavy,¡± Dmitri said, pulling on the rope. The sphere came up from the well, the water sliding right off of it, like it was designed for, and Dmitri took it in both hands. Dmitri was disappointed to see three Coppers swimming in the sphere.


    ¡°Wow, you caught three live specimens at once,¡± Shara said, sounding genuinely surprised. ¡°Is that considered a great catch?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Umm, not really, these are just some coppers. They¡¯re very common,¡± Dmitri said. At least he now knew how much Shara knew about sphere fishing. Although, he wouldn¡¯t be going out on a boat, so a knowledgeable partner wouldn¡¯t be necessary for his safety. Well fishing seemed to be even safer than shore fishing and much safer than boat fishing. Dmitri was closely watching the sphere, brushing up against Dmitri.


    ¡°I think I should put them back now,¡± Dmitri said.


    Shara¡¯s attention snapped to Dmitri, ¡°you can¡¯t release these. These are probably the first fish ever caught here. They are important specimens.¡± Dmitri had only caught some Coppers, although he had caught three which was a nice pull, but her surprise seemed too much to him.


    ¡°Here, touch the sphere to the aquarium to release them into it,¡± Shara said. She was really excited. ¡°We have success already and we haven¡¯t even officially started the experiments.¡±


    ¡°But I don¡¯t really want to put them in with Azure here,¡± Dmitri said, holding the sphere away from Shara.


    ¡°Azure? Is that the name of the fish in there?¡± Shara asked.


    ¡°Yes, I just made it up, but I¡¯m not sure it would be best to be mixing in these new fish,¡± Dmitri said.


    ¡°That¡¯s not a problem at all,¡± Shara said. She walked over to the far side of the aquarium, and slashed her hand across the surface of the wall. A flash followed her hand along the glass, and a divider appeared, separating a section from the rest of the aquarium. ¡°Now quickly, put them in.¡± Dmitri walked over as Shara had instructed and put the sphere against the wall of the aquarium on the new sectioned off portion. The fish smoothly slipped into the aquarium from the sphere. ¡°See, that was easy. We¡¯ll worry about transporting them later because it¡¯s almost time for the master¡¯s dinner.¡±


    ¡°Already? It feels like I just left his laboratory,¡± Dmitri said, while walking over to the wardrobe to put the sphere back into the drawer. He had always lost track of time at the beach before, often only realizing to go back once it started getting dark.


    ¡°Yes, it has been some time since I left. Are you ok, Dmitri?¡± Shara asked. She sounded worried.


    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. I just lost track of time while fishing. It used to happen to me all the time back at my home,¡± Dmitri said. It felt wrong to him though that he called his old village home. Despite it being only a day he had spent here, on a rogue island, he felt very comfortable already, like he belonged here, and Dmitri had never belonged in the village.


    ¡°Come on, let¡¯s get going already or we¡¯ll be late,¡± Shara said, ¡°the room isn¡¯t exactly nearby.¡± Shara grabbed Dmitri¡¯s hand and led him into the hall. She took him down the hall, the direction he hadn¡¯t been before to where the hall ended. The hallway that intersected had a red carpet running along the floor, with light spheres as far as he could see. Shara turned left into the red hallway. ¡°Do the colors in the hallways mean anything,¡± Dmitri asked.


    Shara stopped to look at Dmitri, ¡°they do. While the lab hallway has a white carpet. The main hallways of this section are red for master Sherran.¡± So the red carpeted areas are like his domain, Dmitri thought to himself. ¡°I wonder if they might consider making the white one my blue-green,¡± Dmitri muttered to himself.


    Shara pulled Dmitri along by his hand continuing the walk, Dmitri noticed these walls had murals painted onto them, depicting sea battles between large boats, much like the ones the hunters from his village had used. There was another one of a graying man in rich clothes, surrounded by chests of gold, holding a looking glass with his foot on a small sea beast.


    After walking for a while, Dmitri couldn¡¯t tell how long, Shara turned left again at an intersection, and stopped him in front of a large set of double doors. This hallway had gold trim running along the red carpet and short pedestals with various busts on them. ¡°I hope we haven¡¯t kept the master waiting,¡± Shara said, she let go of Dmitri¡¯s hand and started adjusting her shawl. Shara fidgeted with her clothes a few moments more, took a breath, and opened the doors. Dmitri followed her inside. The room was a large hall, with a long banquet table running the length of the room. The floor was a crimson red, plush carpet, with gold tapestries running along the walls and columns in the room. Sherran and Dorvyn were already in the room. Sherran was seated at the head of the table with Dorvyn standing behind him, his back against the wall.


    ¡°Dmitri, I¡¯ll take you up to the master and announce you, now follow me,¡± Shara said. She walked straight over to where Sherran was seated. As Dmitri got closer, it really was a long walk, he could see Sherran was seated with his head supported by his fingers, with his elbows on the table. Sherran had a very pleased smile on his face while he waited calmly. This feels very formal, I¡¯ve never been to anything formal before, I just hope I don¡¯t make a fool of myself, Dmitri thought. Dmitri noticed that Shara also had a blue ribbon tying her hair in the back. It was a simple style, but Dmitri liked it, the style looked put together. And Dmitri almost smacked his face into Shara because she suddenly stopped. There might have been a warning but Dmitri hadn¡¯t noticed one. Shara took a quick look back at him, with the mask it was hard to tell, but that must be a glare. Dmitri took a quick step back from her.


    ¡°Master, it is my pleasure to announce that your guest has arrived,¡± Shara said in a loud, formal voice.


    Sherran stood and gave Shara a wave of his hand to dismiss her and stood up. He was dressed in a robe again, like when they met. It was a bright white robe, with slashes of silver and light blue through it, and there was a dark blue length of cloth holding the robe in around his abdomen. ¡°Dmitri, I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re here. Please, sit down,¡± Sherran said while gesturing at the chair to his right. Dmitri sat down as Sherran directed, Sherran sat at the head of the table. ¡°I hope you¡¯ve had enough time to acclimate to your new quarters.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I had some trouble at first because I¡¯ve never seen so many artificed objects in one place before, but I¡¯m getting used to it. They allow for things to be so much easier, though, I admit I have no idea what time or what day it is anymore,¡± Dmitri said, smiling at the last part. Sherran laughed at that.


    ¡°We use artifice time keeping devices, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve heard of clocks before. We have smaller ones that don¡¯t need winding around here. I¡¯ll get one sent to your room, Shara will show you how to read it.¡± Sherran said. ¡°I hope you enjoy the small feast I have prepared for you tonight.¡± Sherran raised his left hand in the air and snapped, two masked servants came from a side door behind a curtained off section. They were carrying large platters with steaming hunks of meat, garnished with greens, none of which Dmitri could identify. They placed one of each dish in front of both Sherran and Dmitri. Dmitri noticed that there wasn¡¯t anything for Dorvyn or Shara, in fact, Dmitri didn¡¯t see Shara anymore and took a quick glance around. Shara was standing against the wall behind him, much like Dorvyn was behind Sherran.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about them,¡± Sherran said, ¡°they¡¯ve already eaten.¡± Sherran picked up a bright silver fork and began to selectively eat pieces of meats and greens from each of the plates. Sherran picked up his fork and tried some of the meat closest to him. It had a thick sauce on it with a bit of an earthy taste, while the meat was juicy and tender, it was delicious. Dmitri dug into the food, excited to try the different flavors arrayed before him. Out of the corner of his eye, Dmitri could see Sherran smiling at him, and the two ate in relative silence.


    Dmitri leaned back in his chair, his belly felt like it might burst open. ¡°Do you have room for dessert?¡± Sherran asked. Dmitri felt his eyes pop. It was too much food for any one person or even two.


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid I am positively stuffed,¡± Dmitri said smiling. ¡°This was amazing.¡± Sherran clapped his hands, and the two masked servants came back out and started collecting the plates. There was still some food and bones left, it seemed like a waste, but then again, maybe they saved it for something else in the back.


    ¡°That was a very nice meal, and I enjoyed your company too. It can be hard to find amicable companions to dine with,¡± Sherran said. He was relaxed, sitting high in the chair with his hands resting on the arms. ¡°If you¡¯re feeling ready, I¡¯d like to tell you about how things work here.¡±


    Dmitri leaned forward in his chair, feeling a little uneasy. Dmitri tried to shake that feeling, especially since things had been going so well for him here he probably had no reason to be anxious about what Sherran had to say. ¡°Sure, I¡¯m ready,¡± Dmitri said.


    ¡°This island is run by a hard man that goes by the name of Binsho. Only rare men can claim an island, and it takes an especially strong man to hold such a secure position. Binsho is originally from the Lin Empire. He keeps a tight grip on all that goes around here. I have some leeway here despite most of his men thinking artificers are bad luck, but it is my artifice research that keeps them a dominant force,¡± Sherran stopped for a moment to drink a dark red liquid from his glass. ¡°My success has given me high status here on the island. This whole wing is mine to do with as I please. But to be safe, I¡¯m having you stay near the center of things because spies or some such things happen. They are disposed of when discovered. But I don¡¯t want my precious guest harmed by an overzealous participant in my little game of cat and mouse.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± Dmitri didn¡¯t know what else to say, but Sherran was looking at him like he expected something. ¡°It¡¯s a lot of information, but I¡¯m not sure what to do with it.¡±


    Sherran nodded, ¡°as I expected. It¡¯s about politics, my boy. The more information you have, the better decisions you can make about your position and survival. For you, I can¡¯t help but help you. You¡¯re so naive, and I enjoy that part of your charm.¡± Sherran shifted forward in his seat, putting his elbows on the table and resting his head on the back of his hands. ¡°But long term survival requires strength of some kind, and the question is what yours will be.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m good at fishing,¡± Dmitri offered, ¡°I even caught three Coppers in my ethereal well before dinner tonight.¡±


    ¡°Did you know no one has caught fish here or in any other rogue island before?¡± Sherran asked.


    ¡°But that would be amazing, I mean, how can people not catch fish? It¡¯s a natural thing,¡± Dmitri said. That just sounds unbelievable, Dmitri thought.


    ¡°But it¡¯s not something so simple in the Ethereal. Importing fish and other animals can become expensive for an island that doesn¡¯t grow and raise its own food. This is a strength, but not really much on its own. One man can only fish so much. No, this is not your true strength.¡± Sherran was such a knowledgeable person, and he was so confident with his knowledge. Dmitri felt like Sherran knew something more. ¡°Anyways that is very good to know, Dmitri. I now have a good reason to let Binsho know about my new assistant and why I need him. He¡¯ll see the value in that.¡± Sherran was speaking to himself more than telling Dmitri. Dmitri wasn¡¯t sure if he should have found it unsettling or not that his stay was still not really official. The Union had declared all rogue islands and their inhabitants as pirates, not to be traded with. Although, the official title of the Union is The Union of Trader¡¯s Nations, which meant banning the trade of anything created a black market for it. Traders will be traders, making money where it can be had.


    ¡°Believe it or not, Dmitri, fishing the Ethereal Seas, especially with spheres, is a form of magic. Everything about the Etherel Sea is magic, and human life is completely unsustainable without magic on, in, or near it. But that is my personal theory I developed in my research. I have to challenge common perception.¡±


    ¡°Is that why you are able to enter the ethereal water without dying?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°Very astute, naive but intelligent. You have promise, Dmitri,¡± Sherran said. He was getting excited. ¡°That¡¯s why I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be invaluable to my research. You¡¯re already a huge help to me with the ability to still fish. Usually, just coming to a rogue island in the Ethereal Sea changes people in immeasurable ways. And all fishermen that have come before you lost whatever they had that allowed them to fish. This has been a persistent mystery plaguing the rogue islands because it would stand to make sense that fishing would be a major food staple. Although, some islands make do with beast hunting, farming, raising livestock, or a combination of these.¡± Sherran must be Union born to care about facts like that. He was clearly passionate about this information, but Dmitri was suddenly feeling very sleepy. Dmitri could barely keep his eyes open, even though it was interesting to listen to all the things Sherran was saying.


    ¡°Oh, the Koba must be affecting you,¡± Sherran said, ¡°have you not eaten any before?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve only eaten fish and a few different vegetables and fruits before,¡± Dmitri managed to mumble.


    As his eyes were closing Dmitri could still hear Sherran, ¡°Dorvyn, please help Shara get Dmitri to his room, and after that I want to know all about those Coppers.¡±


    ¡°Yes, master. I was there when he¡­¡± and Dmitri''s eyes closed to the sounds of Shara''s voice. Dmitri could feel his smile as sleep overtook him.

 Chapter 3: Another Turn

    Dmitri woke up lying down in his bed. He was also in different clothes. I hope it was Dorvyn who changed me... although I don¡¯t like that thought either. He was in some extremely soft pants and shirt. The clothes felt nice to wear, but still, the thought of Shara changing his clothes while he was passed out was troubling him. Was it a new day already? The lights were dimmed in the room, so Dmitri could hardly see anything. His head was pounding too. Dmitri felt the same as the time when some of the village boys had rolled him down a hill in a barrel.


    Dmitri groaned from the pounding in his head, and Shara jumped up from a large, stuffed chair across the room, gasping in surprise. Dmitri in turn also gasped out loud. ¡°You startled me,¡± Dmitri said, while also feeling very embarrassed.


    ¡°I, um, was here to watch over you. The master said that you needed to be checked every two hours to make sure you were still breathing until you woke up,¡± Shara said. She was rubbing the back of her head, and got up. ¡°Here, take this medicine, it¡¯s bitter, but you¡¯ll feel better. And when you¡¯re up for it, there¡¯s a bag of experimental spheres next to the well.¡± Shara handed Dmitri a small bag full of powder and a glass of water.


    ¡°This will make the pain go away?¡± Dmitri asked, sounding unsure of it.


    ¡°The master assured me this is what you would need, and that you would feel better almost instantly,¡± Shara said. Well, at least she sounds like she believes it, Dmitri thought. Dmitri took a deep breath, held it for a second and released it. If the pain would go right away, then a bitter taste would definitely be worth it. Also, Shara was watching him very closely. Sometimes, Dmitri felt the way Shara watched him wasn¡¯t normal, like she was observing a person for the first time in her life. Dmitri dumped the powder into the water, shook the cup around a bit, and drank deeply from the cup.


    ¡°Ugh, that was awful,¡± Dmitri said, sticking out his tongue.


    ¡°But how do you feel now?¡± Shara asked. Dmitri found himself wishing again that he could see her face. It would make it easier to read what was going on with her. Shara was much more of a mystery than she needed to be.


    ¡°Actually, the pain just melted away. I feel like I just woke up from a god night¡¯s sleep,¡± The energy in Dmitri¡¯s body felt good. His body felt light and ready to move. ¡°I think I¡¯m ready to do that fishing now.¡± Dmitri looked over at the sack with the spheres in it. There was a chair by the well now too. A quick look around the room revealed the Coppers missing, and the Blue floating in a much smaller section, pushed to the well side of the room. It was just absently picking at some plants at the bottom of the aquarium. Maybe it wanted to be free from the sea, Dmitri thought. All those large beasts out there probably made the Ethereal Sea a scary place to live.


    ¡°That¡¯s great news, I was worried about you,¡± Shara said, and Dmitri could feel the heat in his cheeks. It felt nice having someone happy for him.


    ¡°So, Sherran just wants me to try these out to see how they fish?¡± Dmitri asked. Dmitri sat down on the chair and looked into the bag. He noticed Shara sit back down in her chair too.


    ¡°Yes, keep any creatures you catch in the aquarium and dump anything that is not alive,¡± Shara said, ¡°no matter what it looks like.¡±


    ¡°OK, sounds basically like a normal day of fishing,¡± Dmitri reached in to pull out a sphere. It was like any sphere Dmitri had seen before, except it had a faint green tint to it. At the end of the rope was a piece of metal shaped to hang onto the well. These spheres would probably sink farther into the water than he had yesterday. The hooked metal also had what looked like tiny balls of metal that softly chimed when he moved them.


    ¡°Did you get enough sleep?¡± Dmitri asked Shara while he gently lowered the sphere into the open well, only briefly picturing fish in it. Even the rope felt so soft and strong, probably something else expensive, Dmitri thought.


    ¡°I was able to rest in-between checks. I¡¯ll be OK for today, but I¡¯ll really be tired later,¡± Shara said. She had pulled out a quill and paper and was already writing some notes down.


    Dmitri looked around the bag, which was full or artificed fishing tools of many sizes and shapes. Dmitri picked up a cube and hefted it in his hands. It was clear like glass, and felt like any fishing sphere he had used before, so Dmitri lowered it into the well too, attaching it to the side as well. He ran through the routine of picturing fish as he did this, imagining Silvers in it.


    There was probably room for one more. Dmitri caught sight of one that was a barely transparent purple with more sides than he could count and lowered it into the water. The purple tinted polyhedron made an audible hissing noise when it hit the water, but nothing splashed and the water remained calm, so Dmitri just lowered it in. ¡°Did you hear that hissing?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°Yes, I already noted it down,¡± Shara said. Dmitri could only see the non-slotted side of the mask from his angle. She was focused on her notes, quickly filling up pages. Dmitri had barely done anything, it seemed like a lot to be writing. Dmitri stretched his arms over his head and kicked his feet out in front of the chair.


    ¡°Now it¡¯s time to get comfortable and wait,¡± Dmitri said. ¡°Wait long enough and you¡¯ll get something. At least with a normal fishing sphere, that¡¯s how it works.¡± And before he even finished the last word, a chiming sounded out. Dmitri checked the hooks, finding the purple one¡¯s jingling.


    ¡°So fast, is that a good sign?¡± Shara asked.


    ¡°We¡¯ll see in a moment. It could be a good sign,¡± Dmitri said. He took a quick look back at Shara, and she was leaning forward in her seat with a quill and paper ready in her hands. Dmitri started pulling on the rope, seeing the purple shape rise up to meet him.


    Inside the polyhedron Dmitri could only make out an eye. In every facet of the shape was an eye staring back at him. Dmitri. At first Dmitri thought it was his own eye, but after blinking each eye in turn he saw the eyes looking at him didn¡¯t blink. Dmitri? All of the eyes seemed to be staring at him, from each and every facet.


    Suddenly, Dmitri noticed Shara was shaking his shoulders, standing in front of him. ¡°Dmitri, can you hear me?¡± She was shaking him hard. Dmitri dropped the polyhedron onto the edge of the well, the broken pieces dropping into the waters.


    ¡°I can, I was just looking at those eyes,¡± Dmitri said. His brain was starting to feel like it was clearing up from something. It was similar to the sensation of going from a very dark room out into the noon sun.


    ¡°Eyes? I didn¡¯t see anything,¡± Shara said. She took a step back, studying Dmitri. ¡°What we want to see is fish. So, in the future, please don¡¯t look too closely at anything that isn¡¯t a fish. The master did warn me that this could be dangerous.¡±


    Dangerous? No one had told him anything about testing spheres being more dangerous than normal sphere fishing. ¡°Should I be worried about what just happened?¡± Dmitri asked


    ¡°Your aura seems normal again. You should be fine now,¡± Shara said.


    ¡°My aura?¡± Dmitri asked.


    ¡°Yes, I can see auras. It¡¯s kind of a part of the mask thing. So, for now, just trust me on this,¡± Shara said.


    ¡°OK, I¡¯ll accept that,¡± but Dmitri wanted to know what was going on with Sherran and his research. He couldn¡¯t just be developing fishing spheres. This island was teaming with luxuries he hadn¡¯t even known about. Fishing had to just be a means to some other end for Sherran. Although, it didn¡¯t feel right to think that way about Sherran since he was Dmitri¡¯s benefactor. Dmitri stood up, with Shara taking hold of his arm. ¡°I do feel fine now, you were right,¡± Dmitri said.


    ¡°Remember, if you don¡¯t see fish swimming in it, just dump it and let me know what you saw. The information is valuable, but losing you is not acceptable to this project,¡± Shara said. She walked back to her chair, picked up her quill and paper, and sat down.


    After stretching for a moment because he felt he needed something to do, Dmitri sat back down. That kind of sounds like a poor choice of words, but sometimes Shara just strikes me as awkward with her actions, Dmitri thought. Shara was scribbling down notes on her papers, she didn¡¯t notice Dmitri looking at her carefully. She was still wearing the same dress from last night, and her hair wasn¡¯t as neat as it was, with loose strands of it falling over her mask. Shara looked very studious, and Dmitri found himself wondering if he would have enjoyed learning academic subjects more if he had learned with her.


    Then there was another chiming in the air. Dmitri looked at the well, and it looked like the tinted sphere was the one with something in it. Dmitri began to pull it up slowly, trying to see what was in it. As the sphere came up, Dmitri could see the sphere was completely clouded. He could feel some movement in the sphere, and it seemed like the water inside the sphere was swirling around. Dmitri waited, keeping the sphere close to the water in case he needed to drop it fast. The water in the sphere began to settle down, and Dmitri felt some familiar taps on the glass. ¡°This one has some shell pinchers in it. They¡¯re small sea beasts.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯ve never seen one of those,¡± Shara said, her interest piqued, ¡°what does it look like?¡±


    ¡°Come on over and take a look. We would usually just dump them when I fished at the village since they don¡¯t provide much meat,¡± Dmitri said. Shara got up from her chair, carrying the quill and paper with her. Shara got up quickly, started walking to Dmitri, and then tripped on the corner of the room¡¯s carpet as she approached the well. Dmitri just had enough time to drop the sphere on the floor and catch Shara in his arms. Shara¡¯s papers were strewn across the room and Dmitri didn¡¯t see where her quill went.


    Shara looked up at Dmitri, that deep blue eye of hers searching Dmitri¡¯s. ¡°Are you ok, Shara?¡± Dmitri asked while still supporting Shara. Dmitri felt like that eye was pulling him in, it''s so deep and blue.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    ¡°I guess I¡¯m a little sleepier than I thought,¡± Shara said.


    ¡°Maybe you¡¯ll feel better after a nap,¡± Dmitri said, ¡°feel free to use my bed. I¡¯ll tell you everything that happened when you wake up.¡±


    ¡°Well, maybe a little nap couldn¡¯t hurt,¡± Shara said and let go, taking a step back from Dmitri.


    Dmitri looked at his feet, trying to cool down and noticed the sphere. He took the sphere and just emptied the Pinchers into the aquarium, watching them float to the bottom. Every time Shara got that close to Dmitri, he could feel energy surge inside of his chest. The feeling was exciting, but a little scary too. Ever since Dmitri¡¯s father died, he had been basically on his own, using what his father had taught him to get by. But Dmitri¡¯s father had only taught him some academics and fishing.


    Shara had walked over to the bed and sat down. Shara looked at Dmitri, noticing him watching her. ¡°Wake me if anything happens,¡± Shara said.


    ¡°Ok, I will,¡± Dmitri said, looking away. There was still the cube in the water. Dmitri had noticed a large oval sphere in the sack, which would fit in the well with the cube in there too. ¡°Sleep well,¡± Dmitri said. Dmitri glanced back at Shara, and she was already asleep, curled up on her side and under his blanket.


    Dmitri had to use two hands to lift the large sphere from the sack. It was definitely much heavier than an average sphere. Dmitri braced his knee on the well, took the chain secured to the oval in both hands, and lowered the sphere as slowly as he could manage. Dmitri pictured the energy inside himself and how he felt excited and afraid of it. At the end of the rope were double clasps that Dmitri secured before the slack in the chain was gone. That sphere could hold a lot of fish or a really big fish Dmitri thought. Thinking of fish, I forgot to do the little fishing exercise in my mind, Dmitri thought. It probably wouldn¡¯t make a difference since that exercise is just an old tradition anyways.


    After what seemed like a couple of hours had passed without any more fish being caught, Dmitri heard a sharp knocking on the door. Slightly panicked, Dmitri looked at Shara, but she was fast asleep in the bed. She must be really tired. Dmitri tip-toed to the door as quickly as he could and opened the door.


    Dmitri had expected to see Dorvyn or another masked servant, but what Dmitri was a large, muscled bulk of a man. He was wearing black sailing pants and a coat stripped in red, gray, and white. His skin was tan, he had a bushy black beard, a scar across the bridge of his nose, and a red eye patch with gray trim. Dmitri hadn¡¯t expected to see someone walking around dressed like this, let alone such a fierce looking person. ¡°No mask?¡± Dmitri blurted out in surprise.


    ¡°Aye, I¡¯m not of those mask people walking around, my name¡¯s Sieg, short for Siegfried. I¡¯m one of the Commander''s top captains. Are you Dmitri, the research assistant?¡± Sieg asked, taking a step closer to Dmitri.


    ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Dmitri said, barely managing to answer while nodding. Sieg was clearly not someone to take lightly and he seemed a bit unhappy.


    ¡°Good, now follow me, boy,¡± Sieg said. ¡°The commander wants to see you.¡± From his tone of voice, it didn¡¯t sound like a good thing. But Dmitri couldn¡¯t imagine Sieg using any other tone of voice, not with his size and presence. The man was easily wider and even taller than what Dmitri remembered of his father. Sieg was more a mountain than a man. ¡°Since I don¡¯t want to be walking around the whole island with a boy in tow, we¡¯ll take one of them shortcuts that researcher put in. Handy thing, I just don¡¯t want to be using one when it stops working right.¡±


    Dmitri had no idea what Sieg was talking about, but decided it would be a good idea to just follow him. ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Dmitri said, trying to be heard but not noticed. Dmitri decided to lag behind a few more steps, just to be safe and noticed that Sieg was walking straight to a corner. The big man walked straight up to the corner, put his hands flat to the opposing sides and pushed. Much to Dmitri¡¯s amazement, the walls groaned open, much like a pocket of air in water connecting to the surface.


    ¡°Stop slacking boy, haven¡¯t you seen this before. Get moving before the walls slam onto you, leaving a bloody mess,¡± Sieg said, ¡°I¡¯ve seen it before.¡± Sieg walked through the path he opened, which lead into another hallway with solid gray carpeting and walls with red trimmings. Dmitri hurried after Sieg, not wanting to be left behind. Dmitri didn¡¯t want to know how Sieg would react if he attempted to refuse going through, so instead of finding out, Dmitri ran through the portal.


    Running through the portal had an odd sensation. Dmitri felt a sucking sensation like when you pull an upside down bowl out of water. This could be how a fish feels when it passes into a sphere, Dmitri thought. It looked like a short distance, but as Dmitri passed through, it felt like he walked much farther. Then, when he finally got to the end, afraid of being squashed by closing walls, Dmitri felt the sucking sensation again and stepped out onto the gray carpet.


    ¡°The Commander¡¯s office is just ahead, look sharp and remember to have respect. I won¡¯t take responsibility for what happens if you mess up,¡± Sieg said. Seig stopped a couple feet from the door, sighed, and said, ¡°look boy, it¡¯s nothing personal, you¡¯ll be fine if you keep your wits about you. Answer his questions and be helpful.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Captain Sieg,¡± Dmitri said, walking forward towards the doors. Dmitri looked back at Sieg and the big man was already walking off down the hallway in another direction. I guess I should knock, Dmitri thought.


    Dmitri approached the wide double doors and looked closely at them. They were ornately carved with scenes of sea battles involving ships, fortresses, and sea beasts. The large metal handles were carved in the shape of beast bones. Dmitri placed his hand on one of the handles and a loud chiming rang through the hallway. Dmitri jumped back from the door, alarmed by the sound. The chiming subsided and the doors swung open, revealing teeth-like shapes in-between the doors.


    Inside the room Dmitri could see a spacious office, dominated by a large desk facing the entrance. It was made from a dark, marbled wood Dmitri had never seen before, carved with arches and pillars. Dmitri could see high backed wooden chairs lined up on the sides of the office and a table in the corner piled with maps. There was also a large window facing the sea, with a full size empire flag, a red field with a golden scroll-work border and a white griffin in the center, hanging from the ceiling. A man was standing behind the desk, and Dmitri immediately noticed his eyes, hard and unforgiving. Binsho was about average height, build, and appeared middle-aged. Binsho was bald and clean shaven. He had a darker complexion and had the bearing of a person used to being in command. Binsho wore a fine looking coat and trousers in red, gray, and white with high cuffed sea beast leather boots.


    ¡°Come forward Dmitri, the research assistant,¡± Binsho said. Dmitri walked forward. Where Sieg was intimidating physically, Binsho had a voice that expected obedience. Dmitri found that voice unnerving. ¡°Come forward to the desk, I want a good look at you.¡±


    ¡°Yes sir,¡± Dmitri said. Dmitri had no idea what to expect. This was a pirate lord, and he was a former Empire national. Dmitri found pirate lords scary and the empire was also something scary, so this guy was someone he should really be careful around. In his remote village, there really wasn''t much news of the Empire.


    Binsho studied him for a moment, and then laughed for a bit. ¡°Sit down, Dmitri. Make yourself a little more comfortable.¡± Dmitri did as he was told and sat down quickly in the nearest seat in front of the desk. Binsho took his time sitting down in his large high backed wooden chair, made of a similar marbled wood with red upholstery and golden trimming. ¡°You look like a scared Union boy, but I heard you survived death already. Maybe your village threw you out, but you survived and joined up with a largely notorious wizard who works for me, the strongest island leader in the Ethereal Seas. You are a pirate now.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, sir,¡± Dmitri said, feeling a bit sheepish. Binsho was complimenting him, and Dmitri had expected something scarier.


    ¡°You can just call me commander,¡± Binsho said, the authority back in his voice.


    ¡°Yes, Commander,¡± Dmitri said quickly.


    ¡°I was very interested in what kind of person the infamous Sherran had picked up. Yes, fishing is a unique skill to have out here, but I had expected something more grand,¡± Binsho said while sweeping his right hand in the air. Binsho looked straight at Dmitri, ¡°I expected a talented and capable spy from the Union or Empire.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to disappoint you, Commander. I was just a simple fisherman in a recently converted sea hunter village, which is part of the reason I ended up leaving,¡± Dmitri said, trying to sound confident.


    ¡°So times changed, leaving you behind.¡± Binsho said more than asked. He was nodding, deep in thought over something. Binsho seemed to be a very calculating man. He had expected something more from Dmitri, but Dmitri felt like it was probably better he didn¡¯t live up to those expectations. ¡°Maybe that is part of the reason you can still fish too,¡± Binsho said. Binsho turned his attention to a stack of papers on his desk.


    Dmitri waited for a few moments. Binsho didn''t turn his attention back to Dmitri. The sweat started to bead on his back, making Dmitri itch. Dmitri took a step back to see if Binsho would notice, but Binsho''s focus didn''t change. Dmitri slowly backed his way towards the doorway and slipped out. The doors closed as he left, making a clasping sound as they shut. Dmitri hurried back to the hallway corner he had exited the passage from.


    Dmitri hadn''t passed many corners on the way to Binsho''s office, so it was a short distance. The walls were joined at the corner, appearing to be normal gray stone. Dmitri put his palms on each side of the corner and pushed. Slowly, the walls gave way, recreating the opening Dmitri had come through. On the other side of the hallway he opened, Dmitri could see the usual red carpets and decorations he had seen most often before. It felt more comfortable than the cold grays of Binsho''s areas.


    Dmitri stepped into the corridor, the sucking feeling lightly pulling at him as he entered through where walls should be. Now that Dmitri had a second to look around without someone waiting on him he wanted to look around. The walls, floor and ceiling were solid gray and completely smooth. It was like a bubble in water, except the corridor was perfectly straight. Then Dmitri noticed the walls tremble.


    ¡°Heh,¡± Dmitri heard the sound of disgust behind him, ¡°we don''t need more of that magician''s kind around here.¡± Dmitri turned to see a stocky looking pirate in dirty sailing clothes and a brown bandana behind him. The man had his hands on the wall and was pushing to close the gap. Dmitri could feel his stomach fall and began to run, feeling the fear push him forward.


    As Dmitri ran a man appeared on the other side. Dmitri could see the shine off a silver mask and a white uniform. Could it be Dorvyn, Dmitri hoped, as he ran in the man''s direction. ¡°Help me,¡± Dmitri yelled. The man stuck his arms out and caught hold of the closing walls, forcing them open. Dmitri could feel his heart lifting.


    As Dmitri got close to the silver masked man, he heard a ¡°you''re not getting away that easy.¡± The pirate at the other end redoubled his effort, Dmitri could see the walls slowly closing in on him again.


    ¡°Trust me, you''re safe,¡± the masked man said. Dmitri could see it wasn''t Dorvyn from here. The confidence and calm in his voice made Dmitri feel better. He could trust this man.


    When Dmitri was close to the man he thrust out with his arms, forcing the groaning hallway open wide. Dmitri heard a curse and something hit the ground with a loud thud. Dmitri slipped through the large gap under the man''s arm and turned around. He could see the man adjust his stance forward, the muscles on his back straining through the coat. The man¡¯s arms swung forward, reminiscent of a man chopping lumber, bringing his hands together, slamming the hallway shut. Blood burst from the crack as it sealed back into a hallway corner, splattering the white uniform. Dmitri could feel his eyes go wide. The blood was so red on the pristine white of the man¡¯s uniform.


    ¡°You¡¯re safe now,¡± the man softly while patting Dmitri on the shoulder. ¡°If you think this is a mess, you don¡¯t want to see the other side.¡±


    That was almost me¡­


    ¡°Come now, I need to get cleaned up and we should get you back to the main area. Dmitri, right?¡± Dmitri nodded, feeling numb, letting the stranger turn him around with a large hand on his shoulder and a gentle pressure down the hall.


    ¡°I heard about you in a letter from my little sis,¡± Dmitri looked up towards the man that was walking him down the hall.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Yes, I am Dmitri, may I ask who you are?¡± The man met his eyes and smiled.


    ¡°Of course, my name¡¯s Castel,¡± Castel laughed.